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Maghreb: New Discussion Booklet on the Marriage Contract

Source:

Global Rights Maghreb

The Global Rights Maghreb field office, in collaboration with fifteen local NGOs and lawyer partners in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, announces the publication of a Discussion Booklet on strategic use of the marriage contract to promote women’s rights.

Designed as a practical tool for grassroots mobilisation by local NGOs and facilitators, the Discussion Booklet contains information on clauses that can by stipulated into the marriage contract, reasons for drafting a detailed contract, simplified explanations of national laws and marriage procedures, a Model Marriage Contract, and three human rights education program sessions to use in awareness-raising among women.

The Discussion Booklet accompanies the report Conditions Not Conflict describing the results of action-research on including rights-protective clauses in the marriage contract published by Global Rights and its partners last October.

The husband hereby undertakes not to resort to the repudiation procedure provided for (in
Morocco, by articles 78 and subsequent of the Family Code, in Algeria by articles 48 and
subsequent of the Family Code).
Should despite this clause the husband resort to the repudiation procedure and the repudiation
is authorized by the competent authority, the husband will immediately give his wife (insert the
form – cash, in kind, transfer of property – as well as the method for fixing the amount or
value) solely as a penalty for violation of this contractual obligation. This penalty is separate and
in addition to any damages due for harm caused and the Consolation Gift, these two legal
indemnities paid to the wife provided for by the law and their amounts fixed by the competent
authorities.

Option 2: Delegation of the husband’s right of repudiation to the wife (tamleeq)

The husband hereby delegates his right of repudiation to his wife (tamleeq) as provided for by
(insert the relevant articles of the Family Code, Muslim law), who may exercise this right unconditionally and without prejudice to the other personal or material rights to which she is entitled according to the law or this contract.

Option 3: Conditions for a compensatory divorce by the wife (khula)

In accordance with (articles 115 and subsequent of the Moroccan Family Code, article 54 of the
Algerian Family Code), the two spouses hereby agree that the wife may obtain a compensatory
divorce without the husband’s authorization in exchange for which the husband will receive
(insert the form – cash, in kind, transfer of property – as well as the method for fixing the
amount or value), and this without prejudice to the other personal or material rights to which
the wife is entitled according to the law or this contract.

* As is the case for polygamy, this clause may be useful not only in cases where repudiation is still
legal such as in Morocco and Algeria, but in mixed marriages where the husband comes from a
country where repudiation is legal, as well as in cases where a couple from a country where
repudiation is forbidden relocates to a country where it is permitted. In an egalitarian approach to
family matters, there is no reason for repudiation, whether by the husband or by the wife by tamleeq
or by khula, given the other existing legal options provided for divorce to spouses (mutual consent,
irreconcilable differences, or for fault, which includes non respect of contractual obligations). We
have nonetheless included the former options above given that the law provides for them and in order
to inform and present all possible options to the concerned parties.